Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Changshu and Budapest

For one person, living is cheaper in Changshu: $707 a month against $1,621 in Budapest, rent and utilities included – about $11,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

35

Cost of Living Index in Changshu
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Changshu Living Index
79

Cost of Living Index in Budapest
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Budapest Living Index

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Changshu

🇨🇳 China

$707

/mo nomad

Budapest

🇭🇺 Hungary

$1,621

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Changshu and in Budapest

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in Changshu and in Budapest actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $707 per month in Changshu vs $1,621 in Budapest, rent included.

Changshu $707
Budapest $1,621

A couple spends around $1,120 per month in Changshu vs $2,555 in Budapest, rent included.

Changshu $1,120
Budapest $2,555

A family of three spends $1,532 per month in Changshu vs $3,489 in Budapest, rent included.

Changshu $1,532
Budapest $3,489

Changshu is about 56% cheaper than Budapest, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Changshu sits 47% below the global median, while Budapest is 21% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$2.71 ¥18.12

$13.99 Ft 4,570

-80.63%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$21.35 ¥143

$60.3 Ft 19.7K

-64.62%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$4.98 ¥33.30

$9.96 Ft 3,255

-50.00%

Cappuccino

$3.09 ¥20.67

$3.38 Ft 1,105

-8.58%

Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.43 ¥2.88

$2.13 Ft 696

-79.81%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.27 ¥1.80

$1.87 Ft 611

-85.56%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$0.94 ¥6.27

$3.75 Ft 1,226

-74.93%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.06 ¥13.78

$3.57 Ft 1,167

-42.30%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.87 ¥12.49

$1.13 Ft 370

65.49%

White Bread (500g)

$1.56 ¥10.44

$1.84 Ft 602

-15.22%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.90 ¥6.03

$2.39 Ft 780

-62.34%

Eggs

$1.54 ¥10.31

$3.83 Ft 1,250

-59.79%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.88 ¥86.1

$11.33 Ft 3,702

13.68%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.17 ¥21.16

$6.74 Ft 2,201

-52.97%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.11 ¥67.5

$14.69 Ft 4,800

-31.18%

Apples (1kg)

$1.82 ¥12.19

$1.84 Ft 600

-1.09%

Banana (1kg)

$1.25 ¥8.33

$2.01 Ft 656

-37.81%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.54 ¥10.29

$2.36 Ft 770

-34.75%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.14 ¥7.64

$3.77 Ft 1,232

-69.76%

Potato (1kg)

$0.69 ¥4.60

$0.96 Ft 315

-28.13%

Onion (1kg)

$0.89 ¥5.98

$1.03 Ft 336

-13.59%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.56 ¥3.76

$1.56 Ft 511

-64.10%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.50 ¥3.37

$0.66 Ft 217

-24.24%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.04 ¥20.35

$7.96 Ft 2,602

-61.81%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.65 ¥71.2

$6.01 Ft 1,963

77.20%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.74 ¥4.97

$1.30 Ft 423

-43.08%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.63 ¥10.91

$2.08 Ft 679

-21.63%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.27 ¥1.78

$1.50 Ft 491

-82.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$16.85 ¥113

$27.61 Ft 9,021

-38.97%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.37 ¥9.16

$3.30 Ft 1,079

-58.48%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.35 ¥2.35

$1.30 Ft 426

-73.08%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$6.82 ¥45.56

$19.78 Ft 6,465

-65.52%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.14 ¥7.61

$1.81 Ft 593

-37.02%

Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)

$19.4K ¥129.4K

$29.3K Ft 9.6M

-34.00%

Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)

$16.9K ¥113.2K

$34.1K Ft 11.1M

-50.35%

Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)

$44.92 ¥300

$170 Ft 55.5K

-73.57%

SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)

$9.95 ¥66.5

$23.98 Ft 7,836

-58.51%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$11.63 ¥77.7

$23.42 Ft 7,654

-50.34%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$42.26 ¥282

$66.2 Ft 21.6K

-36.20%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$13.67 ¥91.3

$19.18 Ft 6,266

-28.73%

Cinema Ticket

$5.88 ¥39.29

$9.52 Ft 3,112

-38.24%

Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)

$340 ¥2,272

$537 Ft 175.4K

-36.66%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$17.1K ¥114.4K

$16.6K Ft 5.4M

3.11%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$43.35 ¥290

$101 Ft 33.1K

-57.22%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$30.09 ¥201

$42.99 Ft 14.0K

-30.01%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$70.8 ¥473

$113 Ft 36.8K

-37.22%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$73.3 ¥490

$119 Ft 38.8K

-38.25%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$277 ¥1,853

$805 Ft 263.1K

-65.57%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$192 ¥1,281

$629 Ft 205.6K

-69.53%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$596 ¥3,986

$1,549 Ft 506.3K

-61.50%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$355 ¥2,370

$1,167 Ft 381.4K

-69.62%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,056 ¥20.4K

$5,618 Ft 1.8M

-45.61%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,007 ¥13.4K

$3,968 Ft 1.3M

-49.42%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,626 Ft 531.3K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.89

6.43

-39.50%

CityCost data is based on AI and user input – minor inaccuracies may occur.

Last update for Changshu: October 5, 2026

Last update for Budapest: October 5, 2026

Monthly budget structure

Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.

Groceries & Markets

Changshu

$198 27.7%

Budapest

$258 15.8% 30.3% $60

Accommodation & Living

Changshu

$192 26.8%

Budapest

$629 38.7% 228% $438

Clothing & Footwear

Changshu

$98 13.7%

Budapest

$169 10.4% 72.8% $71

Eating Out

Changshu

$85 12%

Budapest

$224 13.8% 163% $139

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Changshu

$67 9.3%

Budapest

$217 13.4% 227% $151

Sport & Entertainment

Changshu

$54 7.6%

Budapest

$85 5.2% 57.9% $31

Getting Around

Changshu

$21 3%

Budapest

$43 2.7% 106% $22

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $277 in Changshu versus $805 in Budapest. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $21.00 in Changshu versus $60.0 in Budapest. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $198 vs $258 – making Changshu the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇨🇳 Changshu

🇭🇺 Budapest

🕒 Local time

14:42 2:42 PM

08:42 8:42 AM

6 h behind Changshu

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,677,050

1,686,222 Capital

💱 Currency

Chinese Yuan CNY ¥

Hungarian Forint HUF Ft

📈 Exchange rate

1 CNY = 0.15 USD

1 CNY = 0.134 EUR

1,000 HUF = 3.06 USD

1,000 HUF = 2.73 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

HUF, USD, EUR to CNY – Chinese Yuan Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇳 Chinese Yuan (¥)

Chinese Yuan exchange rates as of October 13, 2026: 1 USD = 6.68 CNY (1 CNY = 0.15 USD). 1 EUR = 7.49 CNY (1 CNY = 0.134 EUR).

Hungarian Forint exchange rates as of October 13, 2026: 1 USD = 327 HUF (1,000 HUF = 3.06 USD). 1 EUR = 366 HUF (1,000 HUF = 2.73 EUR).

USD to CNY in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Changshu Budapest 8,260 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Changshu
Budapest

Distances are measured in a straight line. Your location is detected approximately.

City Median Internet Speeds Comparison (Updated April 2026)

The chart highlights the Precision Threshold for mobile and fixed broadband internet speeds, updated quarterly.

Digital Nomad Cost of Living Index

Changshu vs Budapest: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Budapest is pricier by about 129%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,061 per month in Changshu and $2,432 in Budapest. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Changshu, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Public transport costs about 64% less in Changshu. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

Kindergarten costs $340 per month in Changshu and $537 in Budapest. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Changshu, where all-in costs run around $707, than in Budapest at $1,621. In Changshu it covers expenses comfortably, while in Budapest it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Changshu – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.

Both have safer and rougher neighborhoods, but overall safety is comparable to other large cities. Neighborhood choice matters more than the city-level comparison – central, well-trafficked areas feel secure in both.

If budget matters most, go with Changshu. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Budapest makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.